Situations frequently arise where a group of people are responsible for paying for an expense. A group of friends that dine together at a restaurant incur a bill. Roommates that share a rental apartment or a house incur rent and other monthly expenses. Friends will often pool their resources to buy a single gift for a friend. In these examples, one person (the payer) pays the restaurant, rental owner, utility company or retailer to cover the incurred expense. As a result, other friends or roommates owe the payor their share of the original bill.
The non-paying members of the group are now responsible for reimbursing the payor. These group members may have cash or checks to give to the payer. Other times they do not have cash or checks handy to cover their portion of the original bill. Also, people may be remotely located, which makes a cash or check transaction inconvenient.